The Beatles returned to Hamburg in June 1966 to the full raptures of Beatle-mania, with John Lennon later declaring that he "may have been born in Liverpool, but I grew up in Hamburg". The Beatles first honed their performance skills in the early 1960s by playing in Hamburg, and the 1966 tour of Germany came following a return to the Cavern Club and Liverpool.
There are parallels with Jurgen Klopp, who is returning with Liverpool to the land in which he first developed his talents. His return to Dortmund has inspired a response similar to Beatlemania in its feverish delirium. Klopp was mobbed by German photographers at his presser:
Jurgen Klopp arrives for his pre-match press conference at Borussia Dortmund. He's having his picture taken by about 487 photographers.
— Tony Barrett (@TonyBarrett) April 6, 2016
Dortmund are also planning to present Klopp with a gift before the game, with Tony Barret of The Times producing the gag most had thought of when they heard the news:
Klopp's been told his old neighbours in Dortmund have had a collection for him and want to present him with a gift.
— Tony Barrett (@TonyBarrett) April 6, 2016
The club honouring their manager is all perfectly fine, but Dortmund's level of sycophancy towards Liverpool have gone far enough. Things have deteriorated since this excellent, Beatles-based tweet welcoming Klopp to Liverpool when the news was announced:
We heard the news today, oh boy! All the best at The Kop, Jürgen Klopp! All the best at @LFC! #klopplfc pic.twitter.com/2vAvY4Hc4F
— Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) October 8, 2015
The club's social media and commercial folk have gone too far. Here is the incontrovertible proof. We were just about ok with this tweet inviting Liverpool fans to remember their bonkers 2001 UEFA Cup win against Alaves in Dortmund's stadium:
Welcome back to the German capital of football, @LFC! Mind if we focus on the present, though? 😉💛⚽️#bvblfc pic.twitter.com/vtRzcqAxyV
— Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) April 6, 2016
But the commercial department have gone too far. As usual, the rubicon is crossed with the unfurling of a half and half scarf:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uzmHuWKbOUc
This video is partly to build excitement ahead of the game - which could admittedly provide one of the finest renditions of You'll Never Walk Alone in some time - but also to plug some of the products Dortmund have issued ahead of the tie:
Alles für den Viertelfinalknaller! #bvblfc https://t.co/z6XOIsOfse pic.twitter.com/qAlmpFVc2o
— Borussia Dortmund (@BVB) April 4, 2016
Perhaps this is all a cunning plan by Dortmund to lull Liverpool into a false sense of security, but we feel that Klopp - knowing he is facing one of the best sides in Europe in charge of a team still intent on ensuring Simon Mignolet is undroppable - is unlikely to underestimate Dortmund's challenge.
It will be great to see the reception Klopp gets from the Yellow Wall, and fostering good relationships with other clubs is obviously a good thing - but seeing it used as part of gleaming social media and commercial campaign irks.
